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South Africa's youth vs India's might as teams fine-tune for T20 World Cup
The last time India and South Africa's women's teams met, there was a first World Cup trophy at stake. At a packed and partisan DY Patil Stadium, Harmanpreet Kaur and her team made history and became ODI champions while South Africa suffered the pain of losing a third successive tournament final. Since global events are spaced just months apart nowadays, neither side can bask in glory or dwell in disappointment for too long.
The T20 World Cup starts in June and this five-match series is a tune-up for both sides. Taken in isolation, the stakes are low and the hype is subdued as autumn air settles over the southern hemisphere. But that won't take all the edge off what should be an enthralling encounter between two teams who could knock each other out of semi-final contention in two months' time. India and South Africa are both in Group A, which also includes Australia, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Netherlands. With Australia being six-time title-holders, it won't be amiss to assume the other semi-final spot could be a shootout between India and South Africa.
Though South Africa have played the last two T20 World Cup finals and India were knocked out at the group stage in the last tournament, arguably South Africa have more to do if they hope to lift this year's trophy. They are fresh off a 4-1 defeat to current champions New Zealand, where their batting was particularly worrying. South Africa only managed one total above 160 and lost the opening and closing fixture by margins of 80 and 92 runs, respectively. None of their batters finished in the series top three and Annerie Dercksen, their leading run-scorer, was 162 runs behind Amelia Kerr, who topped the charts.
India, meanwhile, come into the contest on the back of four successive series wins, including their most recent one over Australia in February. Their two biggest batters, Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur, led the runs chart at the WPL (the first time two Indian batters did so since the league's inception in 2023) and their squad appears fairly settled. They will even have the advantage of playing a series in England pre-World Cup, so whatever answers they don't find in South Africa, they can wait. Does that make them the favourites? Maybe. But a South African side that continues to have plenty to prove will want to say about that.
Here's what to watch out for in this series.
Where and when?
The five matches take place in quick time, across ten days and three different venues. Kingsmead in Durban will host the first two games in a part of the country that remains warm, even with the approaching winter. Given the time of year, Laura Wolvaardt wondered if it would be "a bit on the slower side", which could suit the visitors. Then it moves upcountry for two matches at the Wanderers, where a low-scoring surface was in play at the recent men's One-Day Cup final, before the series moves to Benoni for the fifth game. On a Monday, you ask? Yes, because April 27 is Freedom Day in South Africa, commemorating the country's first democratic election.
The five matches take place in quick time, across ten days and three different venues. Kingsmead in Durban will host the first two games in a part of the country that remains warm, even with the approaching winter. Given the time of year, Laura Wolvaardt wondered if it would be "a bit on the slower side", which could suit the visitors. Then it moves upcountry for two matches at the Wanderers, where a low-scoring surface was in play at the recent men's One-Day Cup final, before the series moves to Benoni for the fifth game. On a Monday, you ask? Yes, because April 27 is Freedom Day in South Africa, commemorating the country's first democratic election.
How can South Africa find depth?
Marizanne Kapp and former captain Dane van Niekerk (who reversed her international retirement last year) are out of the series as they recover from illness and injury, respectively, but the bulk of South Africa's squad have been around the block.
Marizanne Kapp and former captain Dane van Niekerk (who reversed her international retirement last year) are out of the series as they recover from illness and injury, respectively, but the bulk of South Africa's squad have been around the block.
Kapp's absence gives Dercksen the opportunity to take on more all-round responsibility while also putting the spotlight on some of the younger seamers. Ayanda Hlubi, who has eight T20I caps to her name, is one of them. Wolvaardt was impressed by what she saw of her in New Zealand. "Ayanda had some good pace and bounce and a couple of nip-backers, which I felt was excellent," Wolvaardt said.
Van Niekerk has not yet re-established herself in the XI but was shaping up as a finisher and now that task will fall to Kayla Reyneke. The former under-19 captain, who led the team at the age-group World Cup final in Malaysia last year, is cool under pressure and a genuine big-hitter, who could secure a senior World Cup spot here.
"To have her coming in and to be able to smash sixes like that at will is something that you don't find every day and it's pretty rare, especially in a youngster," Wolvaardt said. "That raw power is pretty hard to teach. I've been trying to work on it for a long time but she seems to just have it. She's very exciting, and a very explosive and destructive player. Hopefully, she is able to do that for many more games for us."
India's endless options
With a huge player pool, India are in as good a place as they can be and Harmanpreet called them "quite confident" and in "good shape", albeit still experimenting slightly with their attack. With an expectation of pace and bounce in South Africa, and with Amanjot Kaur out injured, they have got four others in their arsenal. Kranti Gaud, Kashvee Gautam, Arundhati Reddy and Renuka Singh make up the pace battery, with Gautam in line for a debut in the format.
With a huge player pool, India are in as good a place as they can be and Harmanpreet called them "quite confident" and in "good shape", albeit still experimenting slightly with their attack. With an expectation of pace and bounce in South Africa, and with Amanjot Kaur out injured, they have got four others in their arsenal. Kranti Gaud, Kashvee Gautam, Arundhati Reddy and Renuka Singh make up the pace battery, with Gautam in line for a debut in the format.
"Kashvee is someone who is very talented. She can contribute both batting and bowling and she is a great fielder also," Harmanpreet said. "Bringing her to the T20 cricket is very important because now as Aman is not here, she is someone who can do really well for the team."
Other newcomers to watch out for
South Africa have one uncapped player in wicketkeeper-batter Tebogo Macheke, who was included after Karabo Meso was ruled out with a wrist injury. Macheke was so taken aback by her call-up that she cried on the phone when selection convener Clinton du Preez gave her the news. "I wanted to represent my country so badly when I was younger," she said in a pre-series interview. She also said she has been working on her batting, which will keep the incumbent, Sinalo Jafta, on her toes.
South Africa have one uncapped player in wicketkeeper-batter Tebogo Macheke, who was included after Karabo Meso was ruled out with a wrist injury. Macheke was so taken aback by her call-up that she cried on the phone when selection convener Clinton du Preez gave her the news. "I wanted to represent my country so badly when I was younger," she said in a pre-series interview. She also said she has been working on her batting, which will keep the incumbent, Sinalo Jafta, on her toes.
Anushka Sharma celebrated her 23rd birthday this month and her belated gift could be an India debut. She enjoyed a breakthrough season with Gujarat Giants in the WPL and was included in the India A side for the Asia Rising Stars competition in Bangkok. She finished as their second-highest run-scorer and comes into this series with big expectations and a possible T20 World Cup call-up on the horizon. "She is a great talent. We wanted to bring her here to give some experience," Harmanpreet said. "The main idea was to bring her here, to give some games so that she can get some experience before the World Cup."
Strictly speaking, Bharti Fulmali is not a newcomer but the two T20Is she played were back in 2019. So her recall to the side is a second coming. She has impressed at the WPL, where she plays for Gujarat Giants and operates as a finisher. Fulmali's strike rate of 172.72 in WPL 2024 and 149.91 in WPL 2025 underlines the threat she can pose.
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